I disagree with this line of thinking. If you want to make pool harder, make the table bigger. Go to a 10' or even 12" table. That is what they do in golf. They lengthen the course. They don't shrink the hole. Leave the pocket size alone.
Of course they do, the last 6x12 table I played on had pockets that made most 9-ball tables look like a joke.
I am happy to go to 10-foot tables for professional competition, I have jumped on THAT bangwagon enough in the last coupe years to attest to that.
But the size of the pockets on the 10-foot tables were they to be decided to be made the norm would have to be decided upon. Because ATM there is no such thing as "standard" pocket sizes. The is NO current accepted standard pocket size in pool and thus we are all left to ask the question IF the pockets were to have a standard side decided, going on into the future, then what official pocket size for professional competition would be best for this sport going on into the future for the next 50+ years.
We have no standard to change from, people act as if tight pockets are already some abberition from some official norm, they are most definately not.
I personally want to see 4.25 or perhaps even 4.125 pocket diamonds on 5x10 tables. I think that is a table that could see professional pool through to the future of the sport in a way that no other setup will properly do. 4.5 inch pockets on a 9-foot diamond are showing us exactly how NOT proper those tables are by the absurd breaking contests that many tournaments turn into.
Size of the table has a limit though, you cannot say "ok we are going to call 4.5 inch pockets standard so now how big do we need the table to be to properly test the pros? You would need that 11 or 12 foot table, and that would screw everything up because that type of table is TOO big for rotational pool where you need to move the cueball more all over the table, every second shot would be with the rest.
So what you do is pick a table size, and IMO 10-foot tables, which were used in pool golden year when it was a VASTLY more popular and profitable sport is that size we need, you can market the sport returning to it's traditional roots even if you have some smart marketing people. It is only THEN that you decide what pocket size would work on that table size to provide the proper challenge for the PROFFESIONAL ranks, and I am talking Ralf Souquet, Thorsten, Lee Van, Alex, SVB, Wu, Yang, Appleton, Mika, Archer, the elite players, of which we now have quite afew in the world. We need a table type that challenges those guys in such a way that huge packages are a rare occurance, not impossible, but they are rare. Both players get chances at the table, and one of the players will eventually have their superior skill cause a lead and eventual win in the match.
And let me tell you, that pocket size on a 5x10 table is not going to be 4.5 inches. A 5x10 table if it wanted to be a proper playing ground for the top end of this sport would need to be at the bare maximum 4.25, and I would guess that 4.125 would work better because already we saw those pockets are quite vulnerable on a 9-foot table by a player brand new to them who got used to them and ran 2 6-packs and a 7 pack.
The 10-foot table would make something of a difference and 10-ball would be harder on it. But my ultimate belief over all is that this game needs to wake up and figure out that if it EVER wants to draw in ALOT more fans it NEEDS 8-BALL to become a major game, and for that to happen we need tables that are properly set up to challenge the pros at 8-BALL. Those tables would be a 5x10 diamond with pockets that are cut 4.125 or 4 inches even.
8-Ball is the only future this game will EVER have, and it NEEDS 10-foot diamond tables and tight cut pockets.
Seriously though, to me, the bigger problem is the cloth. Why mechanics feel they have to stretch it as tight as they possibly can is beyond me. I've seen bartables that were faster than the billiard tables in the same room! I once saw a fly by the table, and I swear half the balls rolled a little when that little sucker farted. 
